Welcome Home
by Heian Edenwood
Summary: Ein suffered a loss beyond all measure upon pledging his allegience as a Grim Angel... Now, he must make a choice... a choice that could provide the healing that he has been deprived of... or break him permanently... A bit of EinxFia. Please R and R.
1. Lamentations

**I thought this up when I was feeling pretty down and depressed... I hope you enjoy. :) ****(Note that this is only the first chapter... I can't promise that my chapters for this will be long... but I'll try...)**

**Also note that this will only be 4 chapters long. ;) I won't spoil the surprise for the other 3 chapters for you... but here's how it goes. (As a teaser...)**

**Chapter 1: What you're reading right now.**

**Chapter 2: Fia's point of view on things.**

**Chapter 3: Ein's point of view on things.**

**Chapter 4: End. ;)**

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_The sky's really clear tonight... and it's not too windy... perfect for flying..._ thought a lone figure as he stared up at the eternal pool of darkness, dotted with lights that seemed to govern the darkness. This lone figure stood tall at the edge of a clearing as he stared at the sky. He was dressed in a pale grey jacket that was tied loosely over a white undershirt and a pair of light violet and navy blue shorts that were a tad bit oversized. Draped over his shoulders was a travel-worn cape and tied loosely around his neck was an equally travel-worn scarf. His wrists and calves were carefully wrapped in linen strips and his hands and legs both sported extremely old gloves and traveler's shoes respectively. His hair was somewhat shaggy and it appeared that he had done much traveling and fought much battles... this would strike one as somewhat strange... considering that it was a time of peace... at least after the defeat of the traitorous magus, Hector... However, what was most striking about this lone figure was his sepia eyes... though they were filled with innocence, kindness, along with a touch of naive ness, they also carried traces of sorrow, of longing... of regret... 

_The sky's really perfect for flying right now..._ thought the lone figure again as he looked hungrily at the sky, almost as if he was desperate to fly... to feel the wind beneath his wings... _Wings..._ the lone figure thought as he absently he slowly touched his back... where his wings were supposed to be...

His heart wrenched as instead of wings, in their place were scars that had been messily healed over... almost as if healing over the wounds of which had been created when his wings were ripped out... Smiling bitterly, he spoke out loud to no one in particular, "I almost forgot... I had to sacrifice my wings when I became a grim angel..."

Grasping the hilt of his blade and bringing the bolt-shaped blade to eye level, he stared at it and whispered, "You are my wings..."

As he stared at the blade in grim silence, a voice suddenly called out from behind him, "Ein!"

Turning around, he couldn't help but smile a bit despite himself. There she was, beautiful as ever... caring as ever... She didn't deserve someone like him... a handicap...

"Ein..." Fia whispered as she hugged him, "Are you alright?"

Faking a smile, Ein turned to her, "Yeah... why?"

"It's nothing... It's just that... you've been acting quite strange lately..."

Staring at her in puzzlement, he nodded his head for her to continue. "I mean, you always stare out at the night sky nowadays... and you don't seem as happy as you used to be anymore..." Fia continued speaking, brow creased in concern.

Lifting a hand to stroke her cheek gently, Ein replied, "I'm fine... I'm just tired... that's all..."

_Yeah... tired of having made the wrong choice..._ Ein thought bitterly. Just then, he noticed Fia still looking at him. Gently pulling himself away from her, he whispered to her, "Go back home... I'll be alright..."

Pausing for a moment, he glanced sadly at Fia for a moment before turning around and calling out over his shoulder, "I need to go off and settle something... I'll be back in a day or two..."

There was a silent understanding between both parties as they both parted ways... Fia walking back towards their home in Elendia and Ein, towards the darkness within the mist that hung within the air. Both lovers walked further away from each other, till there was a thick wall of mist.

As Ein walked on, he stared at the images created by the moonlight refracted from the mist. Staring at the images, his face furrowed into a frown and he ran on, not looking back as a single thought ran through his head continuously...

_It's all a lie! Everything's a lie! _

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**Alright... what did you guys think of the first chapter? I'm trying to explore on the emotional aspect of the characters and the emotional and psychological scarring that Ein went through when he sacrificed his wings. Please read and review! **

**God bless, Azarethian Titan**


	2. Fia's Thoughts

**Alright... New chapter's up. This will be centred around Fia's point of view as first-person. Enjoy. :)**

**IMPORTANT NOTE! This chapter has been edited to lengthen it and to add more detail. ;)**

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Ein... why are you so withdrawn now? Why do you hide from me? Have you have lost that spark that made me attracted to you in the first place? What has happened? 

I remember the time when we first met... You just fell from the sky in front of my doorstep, almost as if you were sent here for a reason. During the period when you were unconscious, I took care of you... and in the midst of it, perhaps it is strange... but I felt a certain affinity with you. When you woke up, you could remember anything... everything was merely a blank and it turned out that you were suffering from amnesia. Yet, you didn't fall into a state of self-pity and when you heard that both Lina and I were going to check on the Arcs, you had offered to come along to help us in our search. Even when you didn't know that the battle involved you, you still took the first step to follow us to Lacrima to investigate... and we were still strangers then...

When we first met Serene, I saw your valiance... your courage... Though you were faced with a challenge we all knew you couldn't possibly hope to win, you had still entered combat with Malice in order to protect an innocent... that was what I admired about you... and even as you regained your memory, tugged at loyalties to both sides, you were willing to go past the call of duty and your created purpose to follow your heart and to protect Riviera.

When we were all exhausted from the long trek through the Nelde Ruins and were constantly grumbling, you did not lose your temper, but rather, decided to make the effort to cheer us up... to cheer us on. I still remember the time when you teased Serene about her being old when she tripped on the root. Though she was livid at you, it amused me to no end... that smile that shone on your face... that innocent smile... When we met Cierra, and found out the "Gateau" was missing, you had immediately volunteered to help search for her in the midst of our journey to seal Lindwurm... that act of pure kindness... it made me admire you so greatly...

Throughout the entire journey, you had withstood so many temptations... The offer of unlimited power from Archangel, to be able to wield power even only the gods could dream of wielding, the temptation to flee from the unholy ground of Death when we were all being suffocated from the poisonous spores, the temptation to give it all up when you were forced to fight Ledah, resulted from the devastation you felt when you had to fight with your childhood friend and confidante. You could have easily fallen apart when Ledah was killed in order to protect you, you could have wallowed in guilt and self-pity and self-hatred. No one would have blamed you for falling to these temptations or giving up and yet, you persevered and carried on in order to protect the people you hardly knew... in order to fight for a cause you felt was worth it...

Even with my dying breath as Hector's power gave the final blow, and when I was wracked with pain, I was touched that you would have given up everything just to stay with me in my final moments and I was so proud of you when you got past your sorrow in order to defeat, to bring judgment upon Seth-rah... bringer of the Retribution and it was through your undying love that Ursula could have brought me back from the grave even with her rapidly failing strength...

Trust, kindness, courage, hope, resilience, compassion, determination, innocence... and love... They were what brought us together... I saw all those the moment I met you... and I still see them within your eyes... each is like a single note, all flowing together to form a beautiful melodious chord that can even bring life to the more arid of places and yet, they are slowly being destroyed by something each time I look into your eyes. Instead of seeing those bright, sepia eyes, always filled with hope, I now see exhaustion, helplessness and desperation... all of which is blatantly plastered all over your face, and they even flow off you in dark waves while you desperately try to hide it.

Every night, you come out to look at the sky and moon... and something dark and menacing shrouds you... almost as if something from your past had been successfully suppressed a long time ago but was never dealt with... and it now returns to haunt you... and seeks to slowly choke out all that had been you, like a weed that chokes the life out of a growing plant. From someone who had finally found home, you now seem lost, wandering in the endless mist that blocks your sight from the path...

It has been two days since we last saw each other within the grove. These two days seem like an eternity and my heart yearns for you and worries for you so badly... yet I know that you must go alone in this journey of healing and redemption, to work things out for yourself. All I can do each day is pray for you and wait at the doorstep for you to return...

_Don't wander too far from the path Ein... or you'll never be able to return ever again..._

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How was this:) I'm aware that this is rather short, but yeah... Please read and review. I really need to have pointers on what my strengths and weaknesses are and how I can improve. **

God bless, Azarethian Titan


	3. Letting Go

**Alright... New chapter's up. This chapter will be centred around Ein... the relationship between Ledah and Ein in this chapter is deep brotherly love. It has nothing to do with yaoi... but if it makes you happy, just pretend it's yaoi. ;)**

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Ein dashed through the woods blindly, not knowing where he was going or even caring. The mist stretched far out beyond all around him, forming a thick and seemingly solid wall, one of which he could not possibly hope to see through. With tears in his eyes, he kept running, almost as if he was being pursued by demons... and perhaps he was... He was running from the demons of his past.

Gnarled branches stretched out from the dead trees that surrounded him, almost claw-like and they seemed to reach out to him, almost as if they were reaching out to him, wanting to rip him into shreds. Almost as if he was protected by something, the branches veered away from him and instead took the alternative of tearing at his clothes, clinging to him and hindering his process in running. The boughs of the trees were twisted and deformed, and the holes within the rotting trees looked like faces... faces twisted in agony and grief. The mist distorted them even further, making them grotesque images of people who had lost their way as he had and given up all hope on ever finding their way back to the light.

A distant hooting of a lone owl created an eerie echo and accompanied by the cold, silvery glow of the thin crescent sliver of moon that hung in the night sky, creating haunting apparitions that seemed to follow Ein wherever he ran. Feeling more lost then ever, Ein kept running though his lungs felt like bursting and his body screamed for him to stop. At last, moments later, there was a stab of pain in his side as Ein fell to the ground in exhaustion to catch his breath.

_Ein..._ a rasping voice called out, echoing throughout the woods.

"Wha-" Ein sat up immediately, in spite of the pain he was in, "Who are you?"

_Come to us..._ another voice called out through the darkness, hauntingly alluring and beautiful, yet carrying a tinge of malice beneath the surface.

Standing up shakily, almost as if he was in a trance, Ein took Einherjar in his hands and shambled towards the direction of the voices. _Come to us..._ a chorus of voices echoed throughout the forest, not giving any hint of where the voices were coming from. Yet, Ein knew where to go... he wanted to go towards the voices... he NEEDED to reach the voices...

Eyes blank, Ein shambled on towards an unknown direction till he reached a lagoon... though a quagmire would have been a better name for it. The water was thick and slimy, and pitch black, like the starless night sky above. From where the disgusting mass of slime had coagulated, thick black ooze burst through where the pressure had become too much for the clotted slime to contain. There was no life within the quagmire before Ein, and evidence of it were the multitudes of rotting plant that surrounded the edge of the water. Bones that had been picked clean lay upon the quagmire, forming some sort of bridge towards a giant rock that stood tall and ominous in the middle of the swamp.

Sitting upon it, was a sight so horrible that one could not possibly bear to look at and yet be able to return to the others to relive and describe the sight. A female sat upon the rock... yet one could only tell that she was female from the way her chest jutted out. The lower section of her body was decomposing, where parts of bone could be seen and maggots could be seen tunneling in and out. Her waist was comically small compared to the rest of her body and it appeared to be festering from some sort of disease. Her chest was covered in greenish scales that gave off a pale poisonous glow and her head was nowhere near human. It was extraneously large, almost as if her head was a balloon that had too much air pumped into it. Her eyes and mouth were merely black gaping holes that were grotesquely stretched and distorted beyond belief. The flesh upon her face was peeling off as she spoke in a deceptively sweet voice that contradicted all that she looked like.

"My child... how pained you are... won't you come closer?" Misty-eyed, Ein walked slowly upon the bridge of bones before he hesitated. His eyes cleared, almost as if he was waking from some sort of deep slumber. Hissing, she spoke once more in the sickly sweet voice, "I understand your pain... as you have lost your beloved wings... I have lost my beauty... Come closer... perhaps I can help you..."

Ein's eyes misted over once again as he stepped forward. Plunging into the thick ebony muck, Ein's eyes became clear once again as he heard a triumphant screech. "Fool... you thought that you could run from the demons that chase you? A pity that you have in fact run towards us!"

Cackling in cruel mirth, the female sat upon her rock, watching with interest as Ein struggled to keep afloat in the thick slime that constantly tugged at him, slowly but surely pulled him under. "Join my collection of lost souls," screeched the female in jubilation, "What a fine addition you shall be... and soon that foolish wench of yours shall follow... just for the love of someone as useless as you!"

Tears filling Ein's eyes, he felt his energy being sapped as the cold clammy fingers of death gripped him, and pulled him beneath the surface of the quagmire. "Please let Fia be safe..." That was the last thought within his mind before everything went black.

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Blinding light.

That was all he could see... _Where am I?_ Ein thought in puzzlement as he looked around, _there's nothing around... and wasn't I pulled beneath the swamp?_

Just then, realization of his current position hit him like a ton of bricks as his eyes widened. _So I'm dead..._

"How can you be so sure that you are dead, when you've never experienced death before?" a familiar voice came from behind Ein.

Ein's eyes widened as he immediately recognized the voice. It was the voice of someone who had guided him right from the start... when he was still young... to the point at Heaven's Gate... it was the voice of someone who had protected him in the most troubled of times. Spinning around, he found himself face to face with the face of his best friend and the brother that he had never had... Ledah...

Glancing coolly at Ein, Ledah spoke out, "It appears that you still recognize me..."

There was a moment of silence before Ein fell onto Ledah, sobbing. He felt so weak... so helpless... and he didn't care about what was happening anymore... the barriers that he had so carefully built up over the years had finally broken down, unable to bear the pressure that had slowly but surely worn down his strength... and now that the barriers were down, Ein could no longer hold it in.

Ledah held Ein in his arms, in a warm embrace, and neither spoke as Ledah let Ein draw strength from the fact that he was there. Folding his wings, both of which spanned magnificently on either side when spread out, he created a protective veil around Ein, almost as if he was trying to shield Ein away from everything that had been haunting him.

After a meditative moment of silence, Ledah unwilling separated himself from Ein gently and placed a finger under Ein's chin and lifted his head up and stared into Ein's eyes, "I have come here for one reason... and I do not have much time... neither do you..."

Confusion was evident within Ein's eyes as he looked at Ledah, "What do you mean?"

"This fiend... the one who lured you here... her name is Crepuscule... she was created the moment you had started giving up on hope... and slowly, she drains everything that you were... taking away everything that you were..."

Ein's eyes were downcast as he muttered, "But I'm nothing... I can't do what others can do... I cann-"

Ledah placed a finger to Ein's lips, stopping him from saying anything further, "But you have... you did what I could not hope to do... you followed your heart to do what was right..."

Ein turned away from Ledah and whispered, tears brimming within his eyes, threatening to spill out once more, "I am nothing more than a handicap... I thought that without my wings, I was still complete... but each night, I look at the sky and I yearn to fly... yet I cannot..."

Crimson eyes filled with sadness met sepia eyes as Ledah replied, "Then perhaps you have not yet learnt to let your past go..."

Ein was filled once more with questions and they were bubbling their way out of him through his mouth. However, before he could speak, Ledah continued, "In order for healing to take place, we need to let go of some things... and sometimes, they can be the dearest thing in the world to us..."

Staring at Ein, Ledah ended with a sigh, "And I'm sure you know what it is..."

Ein gripped the handle of Einherjar so hard that his knuckles were turning white, unwilling to let go of it, "But it's part of me..."

"Or have you made yourself part of it?"

Head reeling, Ein whispered, "But I am nothing without it... Einherjar was forged from a part of me..."

Pulling Ein close to a tight embrace, Ledah gently planted a kiss on Ein's forehead as he whispered, "know that I will always watch over you... and when you feel weak, you can always draw upon my strength."

There was a moment's pause before Ledah pulled away and said, "I must now leave... time is running out... cling not to your past, but hope for the future..."

With a great flap of his wings, Ledah rose up and disappeared into the light. Turning to Einherjar, Ein placed a gentle hiss to the blade, almost as if saying goodbye to an old friend, "It looks like everything ends here now..."

Gently running a hand over the flat of the blade, Ein dropped Einherjar to the ground. However, before it could reach the ground, beads of green light collect around Einherjar, causing it to float in mid-air. The beads of light slowly merged together, coalescing into a seamless blade of light. As the light faded, Einherjar was gone, but in its place, a vortex of green light swirled out and surrounded Ein...

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Crepuscule peered eagerly into the ooze, almost as if she was waiting for a dead body to float up. The ooze started bubbling quickly, almost like water boiling within a pot. From it, burst forth a pure beam of green light, followed by another and yet another. More pure beams of green light kept appearing from where the bubbling had been occurring and the night sky was soon awash with green.

Crepuscule leapt back in shock as a figure burst from the deadly black ooze that had swallowed him up earlier. Pure green wings sprouted from his back as they glowed with a holy aura. Pointing a finger at Crepuscule, he spoke in a low voice that carried much power, "You can't control me anymore..."

There was an unholy wail that tore through the night air as Crepuscule started melting before the light, "but you need me... I am what you created..."

"I do not... I never realized that completion was always by my side... you are no longer welcome... begone!"

There was one final unholy screech before the sky opened itself, almost like a gaping wound, sucking in the entire forest, the deadly quagmire and Crepuscule before sealing itself back again, leaving no trace of it having been opened before. Everything was plunged into darkness, but that only lasted for a moment. As Ein slowly landed back to the ground, whereby he was now surrounded by lush greenery, his green wings disappeared, leaving behind nothing... the twig-like scars that had been on his back had all but disappeared, leaving no indication of which his wings had been ripped off.

Now, as Ein stared at his empty hand, Einherjar gone, he was filled with a sense of loss... yet he was experiencing something vaguely familiar... something that he had forgotten a long time ago... like an old friend that had once again been found. His eyes remained dim, yet it could be seen that something inside stirred, as if awakening from a slumber...

_It was time for the journey back home..._

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**I was actually quite surprised that the chapter turned out this long. Please tell me what you think in your reviews... Thanks!**

**God bless, Azarethian Titan**


	4. Welcome Home

**This chapter is to wrap up the entire story. ;) I hope you people enjoy it. **

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Fia busied herself with the flowers on the flowerbed by the house both she and Ein lived in. Her face bore a thoughtful expression, displaying the fact that she wasn't quite focused on the task she had set herself upon. _I wonder how Ein's doing..._ Fia thought as she lifted a hand to wipe the sweat that had formed on her brow.

Breaking away from the flower she had been fiddling with, Fia stood up and dusted her white working apron off, now covered in dust and mud, and walked into the house to get a drink of water. Fia sighed inwardly as she sat down heavily upon the chair and set her glass of water down. Looking out of the window, she was soon reduced to a state whereby she was staring at nothing, thoughts flowing through her mind freely as sights passed before her.

Supporting her head with her right hand, Fia blew a strand of green hair out of her hair as she mentally spoke out what she saw. _Dust in the air... I need to dust the house soon. A lot of trees... birds flying... someone coming towards this house..._

Fia continued reciting what she saw, paying no interest to the figure approaching in the distance before she started recognizing him. Eyes widening, she slowly stood up shakily from the chair she was sitting on as she took a closer look. Disbelief, mixed with much joy filled her heart as she took one unsure step from her chair and towards the door. It couldn't be... yet who else could be approaching?

Affirmed by that thought, each step Fia took became more assured... the first step... second step... Fia soon broke out into a run as she was filled with a myriad of emotions. Ein was back and that was all that mattered. A great smile evident on her face, Fia jumped into Ein's arms, not caring about anything else.

As Ein felt Fia jump into his arms, he felt something like what felt like laughter bubbling within him. Trying to hold it back and failing miserably, Ein broke out in laughter, holding her to him tightly. It felt as if something that had been bound within him had finally broken free... and he was glad of it. Never throughout his life as a grim angel had he ever felt so free... never ever had he felt so alive.

Fia glanced up at Ein's face and saw his smile. Instead of that forced smile that tried to hide his despair, of which she had come to grow accustomed to, it had been replaced by a sincere smile, one filled with unbridled joy. Fia buried her face into his shoulder, savoring the moment that they were finally back together. A silence hung within the air, which like the night at which Ein had left, was filled with understanding. However, unlike that fateful night, this silence was one filled with healing, one filled with renewed hope, one filled with life...

No words were needed to express what both felt at that moment. This silence was so quiescent, yet it carried so much laughter... it carried so much tears and it carried so much hope. As Ein held tightly onto Fia, he finally found wholeness, completeness despite the lack of Einherjar. Tears glistened within his eyes as a rush of emotion swept over him once more. Gone were his insecurities... gone were the demons that had once haunted him... gone was the veil that had once shrouded him.

Fia lifted her head to look at Ein and green eyes met sepia eyes. Two words left her mouth. Two words that were so simple, yet carried so much promise and meant so much... and both knew and understood... "_Welcome Home..._"

_It's amazing how you can speak right to my heart_

_Without saying a word you can light up the dark_

_Trials are near, I can never expect_

_What I hear when you don't say a thing_

_The smile on your face lets me know that you need me_

_There's a truth in your eyes saying you'll never leave me_

_The touch of your hand says you'll catch me whenever I fall_

_You say it best when you say nothing at all..._ (When You Say Nothing At All --- Ronan Keating)

:Fin:

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**I'm aware that this was short... but I liked it. :P Please review. **

**God bless, Azarethian Titan**


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